A Dozen Spots Serving Interesting Thanksgiving Feasts

November 25, 2013

It doesn’t matter that Thanksgiving is one of the biggest homemade meal holidays of the year — apartment kitchens in NYC are still tiny, and the prospect of turning a full feast out of a set-up that resembles an E-Z-Bake oven and a Bunsen burner is daunting at best. If you’re inclined to let someone else do the cooking, know that there are scads of restaurants open for the holiday. We’ve rounded up a dozen that seem particularly interesting.

Ilili, 236 Fifth Avenue, 212-683-2929
This Flatiron restaurant will serve a $52 four-course prix fixe Thanksgiving dinner done Middle Eastern-style from 2-9 p.m. Pick two mezze — choices include hummus, fluke carpaccio, and foie gras — an entree like turkey, branzino, or risotto; and a dessert like ginger bread pudding or pumpkin cake. Great for vegetarians, Ilili is also offering a take-out Thanksgiving feast; you’ll need to get your order in by tomorrow, Tuesday, November 26, at 5 p.m.

Betony, 41 West 57th Street, 212-465-2400
If you haven’t yet ventured up to Midtown for Betony, this holiday might be a good excuse: The restaurant will serve a three-course prix fixe menu for $115 per person (and $60 for children 12 and under). Look for appetizers like foie gras with kabocha and buckwheat, entrées like roast turkey with butternut squash and glazed chestnuts, and classic pies for dessert. Meals are served with family-style sides, and vegetarian options are available. Make a reservation for any time between noon and 8 p.m.

Pippali, 129 East 27th Street, 212-689-1999
This not yet two-month-old Curry Hill restaurant will dole out an Indian-themed Thanksgiving feast from chef Peter Beck, who previously worked the burners at Tamarind. The a la carte holiday menu includes a turkey kebab with cranberry chutney, masala kofta with spicy turkey meatballs, and bread pudding. Stop in between 11:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. or between 5 and 10 p.m.

Wallse, 344 West 11th Street, 212-352-2300
This West Village Austrian restaurant debuts a Viennese Thanksgiving feast this year. Start with a black truffle-bedecked chicken liver parfait or smoked trout palatschinken with apples and dill, move into turkey with cabbage and dumplings or venison with spaetzle, and finish with pumpkin tart or pear strudel. The prix fixe meal will run you $60 or $95 with wine pairings; reservations are available from 11:30 a.m. until 10 p.m.

Carnegie Deli, 854 Seventh Avenue, 212-757-2245
Perhaps you’d like a cheaper Thanksgiving at an iconic New York spot famous for massive sandwiches. Head over to Carnegie Deli, which will sell $40 three-course meal that includes options like matzoh ball soup, brisket of beef, roast turkey dinner, apple pie, and pumpkin cheesecake. Sounds like a Thanksgivvukah menu to us, especially when you consider the deli’s sandwich of the month: the Thanksgivvukah sandwich, an opened faced heap of turkey and gravy on latkes. The deli will serve from 6:30 a.m. until 2 a.m.

Louro, 142 West 10th Street, 212-206-0606
David Santos’ West Village spot is serving up a $55 three-course prix fixe with a special bonus: You can add white truffles to any plate for an extra $45 (it’s a holiday — so go on now). The delicacy might be particularly nice atop the butternut squash agnolotti, the chestnut soup, or the turkey. Other menu highlights include octopus bolognese, venison, and pumpkin pie ice cream. Reservations are available from noon until 8 p.m.
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The Marrow

Stella 34 Trattoria, 151 West 34th Street, 212-967-9251
Remember when turducken was a thing? It still is at Stella 34 Trattoria, where the kitchen will stuff a chicken inside of a duck inside of a turkey. A twist, though: This version adds foie gras. The $60 prix fixe ($40 for kids) also encompasses options like classic roasted turkey, mac and cheese, and branzino, and meals come with a host of sides. Desserts like pumpkin pie and chocolate ganache pie come topped with the spot’s excellent gelato. Reservations are required; the restaurant is open from 4 to 10 p.m.

The Marrow, 99 Bank Street, 212-428-6000
Harold Dieterle puts a German-Italian spin on Thanksgiving at this West Village restaurant via a $65 three-course prix fixe menu. Look for pretzel stuffing, rigatoni with duck sausage, bone marrow with sea urchin, roasted turkey with sage gravy and stewed cranberries, roasted hen of the woods mushrooms, and spiced pumpkin pie with quark ice cream. Make a reservation for sometime between 2 and 9 p.m.

Buttermilk Channel, 524 Court Street, Brooklyn, 718-852-8490
This Carroll Gardens spot will offer it’s inaugural three-course Thanksgiving dinner, which comes in at $45. Start with turnip and pear soup or roasted squash tart; move to the cider-brined turkey dinner with oyster stuffing, butternut squash gratin, and brussels sprouts (plus other sides); and finish with a slice of pecan or apple pie. Reserve a spot for sometime between noon and 6:30 p.m.

Maison Premiere, 298 Bedford Avenue, 347-335-0446
This absinthe house and oyster bar gets in on the turkey holiday with a $65 prix fixe menu that traipses through appetizers like duck mousse and smoked trout, entrees like turkey and cod (to which you can add $15 worth of truffles), a couple of shared sides, and a host of shared desserts like panna cotta and madeleines. You’ll need a reservation for that menu — it’ll be served between 1 and 9 p.m. — but you’ll also be able to walk in to the bar for a small plates menu, suck down oysters until 1 a.m., and drink until 4 a.m.

Spotted Pig, 314 West 11th Street, 212-620-0393
Speaking of walk-ins, this walk-in-only gastropub in the West Village will serve its regular menu for Thanksgiving in addition to some thematic specials. Check out the roasted pumpkin soup with kale and pancetta, the apple salad with cheddar, the confited turkey leg for two, and the pumpkin pie.

Jones Wood Foundry, 401 East 76th Street, 212-249-2700
This cozy Upper East Side British restaurant has a $39 three-course Thanksgiving dinner in the works featuring butternut squash ravioli, roast turkey with myriad sides, and pumpkin pie with chantilly cream. The restaurant will also serve part of its a la carte menu stocked with more traditional pub fare like bangers and mash and cod and chips. Festivities run from noon to 8 p.m.